If You Love Someone, Set Them Free
by storyteller1425
Summary: Four years ago, Percy and Annabeth went their separate ways. Now, Annabeth contemplates his decision to leave and wonders if she did the right thing by letting him go. AU. OOC. Dedicated to Cassie's Neighbor.


**A****/****N****: ****Heyy ****guys****... ****Hehe****. ****Long ****time ****no ****see****, ****eh****? ****It****'****s ****been****, ****what****, ****almost ****a ****year****? ****Oops****. :} ****Well****, ****I****'****m ****back ****and ****I ****have ****some ****important ****matters ****to ****handle****. ****If ****any ****of ****you ****are ****fans ****of **_**Cassie**__**'**__**s **__**Neighbor**__**, **_**you ****should ****know ****by ****now ****that ****she ****is ****leaving ****this ****website****. ****I****'****m ****sure ****we****'****re ****all ****very ****sad ****to ****see ****her ****go****. ****I****'****m ****especially ****sad ****because ****she ****is ****such ****a ****good ****friend and inspiration ****of ****mine****. ****If ****you****'****ve ****never ****read ****her ****work****, ****I ****suggest ****you ****go ****do ****it ****now ****because ****they ****are ****absolutely ****amazing****.**

**So ****anyway****, ****I ****was ****going ****through ****my ****old ****work****, ****and ****I ****found ****this ****little ****piece ****tucked ****way ****at ****the ****bottom ****of ****everything****. ****I ****found ****that ****it ****kind ****of ****fit ****my ****situation ****with ****my ****dear ****friend****, ****so ****I ****decided ****to ****post ****it****. ****It****'****s ****one ****of ****my ****first ****fanfictions ****so ****it ****may ****not ****be ****as ****good****. ****I ****tried ****editing ****it ****the ****best ****that ****I ****could****. ****Enjoy****!**

**DISCLAIMER****: ****I ****do ****not ****own ****any ****of ****Rick ****Riordan****'****s ****characters****.**

**Dedicated ****to **_**Cassie**__**'**__**s **__**Neighbor**__ - _**Hello ****there****, ****my ****dear****. ****Not ****sure ****if ****you ****will ****find ****the ****time ****to ****read ****this ****or ****not****, ****but ****if ****you ****do****, ****just ****know ****that ****I ****love ****you****. ****Good ****luck ****in ****life ****and ****remember ****to ****keep i****n ****touch ****with ****me****!**

I stare at the blueprints laid out on my desk, the words practically dancing around on the pages. I haven't had much trouble with my dyslexia nowadays. It seemed to have worn off a bit. But at the moment, I couldn't concentrate. Maybe it's because I'd spent almost the entire day at work, or maybe it's that mocking picture staring at me. I decide to go with the latter and put down the picture.

"Annabeth?" Stella's voice calls out.

I reply, "In here!"

I hear her come from behind me. "What are you still doing here? It's past midnight. Shouldn't you be home already?"

Stella is the vice president of the architectural company I work at. She rarely stays this late, only when we have a hectic project to be done. Unlike me, she enjoys her evenings at home with her husband.

"I still have a lot of work to do, Stella. I'm fine," I sigh.

She turns my chair around so I face her. Concern is etched on her face as she stares at me. Stella tells me, "It's unhealthy to stay up at such a late hour like this, Annabeth. Today's Friday. That means we don't have work tomorrow. Go home and rest. Don't you have a man waiting for you?"

There it is. The unbearable question I had hoped she wouldn't ask. I look down at my lap and force myself not to cry.

"I don't have anybody waiting for me at home. My "man" left four years ago," I murmur.

Stella's expression turns to surprise then pity. "I'm sorry, honey. I didn't know. It's just, you have that picture on your desk, the one with you hugging that boy. I just figured…"

"No. It's okay," I say. I don't realize I'm crying until I feel a tear rolling down my cheek.

Stella pulls a chair up and sits down. "Why don't you tell me what happened. Did you break up? Why did he leave?"

"Calm down, Stella." I laugh. "But to answer your questions, I guess we kind of broke up, and why he left is a long story.

"Well, I'm all ears." Stella gestures me to continue.

"We were eighteen," I begin. "That was when college crept up, and we were thinking of where we were going. Both of us had already applied for all the colleges we had wanted to get into. Then one day, Percy comes up to me and tells me he's found this incredible opportunity. It was a journalism job that required you to travel around the world. It paid good money and required little experience. I could tell he was interested in it. I thought it would definitely offer a great adventure."

I pause, thinking of our past. It was just like Percy to go and find adventure in this world. Our adolescence had been nothing but extreme adventures. It seemed fit that he would want to do something like that.

"How long had you two been dating?" asks Stella, interrupting my thoughts.

I reply, "Well we were best friends since we were twelve, but we didn't begin dating until we were sixteen."

She smiles. "That sounds like those cliché love stories where the best friends fall for each other."

I roll my eyes. Leave it to Stella to make a remark like that.

"Anyway," I continue, "I saw how interested he was in this job and asked if he really wanted it. He told me he was thinking about it. Then he told me that he wanted me to come along and travel the world with him. I shot down the idea. I wanted to go to college and get a job in New York.

"I told him that he would have to go without me. At first, he thought I was joking, but I wasn't. If he really wanted to take this job, I didn't want to stand in the way of that. He eagerly went after it once he knew I was fine with it. We didn't argue, we didn't fight, there wasn't any misunderstanding. I understood why he was doing this and I was willing to let him do it, even if it meant I wasn't going to be there with him. So a few days later, I took him to the airport."

At this point, tears are streaming down my face. I take a deep breath to calm myself down. I continue, "We said our goodbyes. He gave me one last kiss, and then he was gone. I haven't seen him since."

"And he didn't even bother to call you?" asks Stella.

I say, "He did call once, right after his flight landed at his destination. He had said that he landed safely and that…that he loved me. But other than that, we haven't kept in touch."

"Oh, Annabeth," says Stella. She pulls me into a hug. When we pull apart, she asks, "Did _you_ever try calling _him_?"

I shake my head. "I just thought he was too busy traveling the world. My phone call would probably be ignored in all the fun he was having. Besides, he probably already moved on. We didn't officially break up, but I think that it was implied when he boarded that plane."

"You could have at least tried calling him once. I bet he would have appreciated that."

I sigh. "What would a measly phone call from me mean to him? Right now, he's probably got girls from all over the world flocking him."

"Pull yourself together, Annabeth!" Stella exclaims. "He called you and told you he loved you! Isn't that enough for you to call him again?"

"Just drop it, Stella. He's probably on the other side of the world now. There's no need for me to call him anymore."

"But do you still love him?"

"More than anyone will ever know."

It is Stella's turn to sigh. "You know what they say. If you love someone set them free."

I nod and close my eyes, leaning back on my chair.

"And if they come back, they're yours," Stella says softly. She places a hand on my shoulder, giving it a light squeeze.

"You guys were obviously in love with one another," says Stella. "Percy may have gone off to accomplish an ambition, but he's blinded by it to see what's most important.

I look up in her eyes with a questioning gaze. "What would that be?"

"_You__,__" _she says. "If he really does love you, he will come back. You just have to wait for him. Don't worry, he'll come to his senses. With a catch like you, he'll be back in no time."

I smile. "Thanks Stella."

"Anytime. Now go home. Sleep in and enjoy your Saturday."

Stella stands up and walks back to her office. I stand up as well, gathering my things. Once my bags are packed, I take one last look at my desk. I put the picture I'd set down up again. I smile as the memory of the picture floods into my mind. It was taken when Percy and I had visited the Statue of Liberty. We are hugging and smiling in the picture, with the Statue of Liberty right behind us.

I pick up the picture and head towards the elevator to go home.

..0..

At the front door of my apartment, I put my things down to insert the key into the lock. Just as I'm about to turn the key, I hear a familiar voice from behind me.

"You never called."

All I can do is stay frozen in my place, unable to comprehend the situation. Slowly, I turn to face the familiar stranger, and all the air leaves my lungs. There he is, as handsome as ever, smiling down at me with that achingly beautiful smile. My mind can't seem to register the fact that he is standing right in front of me. I am only able to utter one word: his name.

"Percy." It comes out as barely a whisper.

He pulls me into his arms, and I am suddenly surrounded by his warmth, something I have missed for four years now. I close my eyes.

"You're back," I say, my voice muffled against his shoulder.

He replies, "I'm here to stay."

Stella's words flash into my mind: _If __you __love __someone __set __them __free__._

_And __if __they __come __back__, __they__'__re __yours__._

I smile.

**A****/****N****: ****Please ****check ****out **_**Cassie**__**'**__**s **__**Neighbor**__**'**__**s **_**work ****if ****you ****haven****'****t ****already****!**


End file.
